Mercedes Dealer Misery Alb NM

• First visit – Day 1:
  • The start problem wasn't doing it when we got there, so no attempt was made to troubleshoot the problem. (There is a Service Bulletin for this issue I later discovered)
  • Clunking diagnosed as a bad front differential ($10,000, warranty thankfully)
  • Parts ordered, a month until they arrive
• Second visit – Day 31:
  • I informed the dealer there is a Service Bulletin for the start problem; they did not troubleshoot the first time we were in the service department. It turns out; it is a common problem.
  • The differential was at the dealer; stretch bolts required to mount it were not ordered
  • Return home, another 8 hours of driving.
• Thrid visit – Day 34:
  • Stretch bolts are ordered and received
  • While taking front end apart, determined, bad CV Joint, nothing wrong with differential
  • CV Joint, not in stock
• Day 35:
  • CV joint ordered, received, and installed
  • Clunking sound, original problem still present
  • Future troubleshooting shows two of the four mounting bolts for the differential are loose. Differential, when loaded/unloaded (lash), would move up and down and bang the subframe – two bolts tightened, problem solved
• Day 35 – PM:
  • Driving home, four more hours, check engine light comes on, and red battery light comes on

• This is part one of this story; there are two more parts. Eventually, the glow plug module replaced, a detached ground wire, a bad alternator, another driveline service bulletin, and an AdBlue (DEF) line and nozzle replaced for leaking. These two parts of the story do not directly involve ABQ Mercedes-Benz. Another 60 days of going from one dealer to the next before all resolved.

• We also had 'service' clashes with the dealer. Poor communication, a do not give a shit attitude around the inconvenience, misdiagnosing, failed to order all parts, etc.

• At one point, we called the owner of the dealer, Tom Bohlman, trying to get some resolution. He could care less what we had to say and told my wife, "I don't mean to diminish anything you've said, but this really isn't a big deal. It's not like you have a loved one on a ventilator in the hospital." Along with other comments that were equally offensive.

• I will add Littleton, CO, and Henderson, NV, dealers we also visited; they are great dealers who bent over backward for us. ABQ, I might still consider bringing my lawnmower in for repair… if I am desperate.

kjg912 said:

I had taken my 2004 T1N to the dealer to fix a broken (non-woodruff?) keyway under the Harmonic Balancer. Well, they did fix the keyway but improperly installed the Valve cover gasket and left me with an oil leak, they pinched the bottom radiator hose too tight and left me with a coolant leak (I replaced the hose) I had another coolant leak due to the clamp not being re-installed so it leaked coolant when hot, they did a helicoil on an injector which later failed and they failed to install a random nut (I put one back on) When confronted with these issues - especially the improperly installed valve cover gasket, their response was that "the vehicle was worked on previously so we cannot do anything about these issues! So if you own a older T1N sprinter, the Dodge dealer on the Westside has mechanics who work on the older models and is a far better alternative that the Albuquerque Mercedes Dealer!

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